Blacksmiths to forge Black Saturday memorial

It's a creed that has special resonance for the survivors of Black Saturday: "Through the heat of fire, beauty can be forged".

The motto drives the ancient craft of blacksmithing, and today's generation of blacksmiths are banding together to create a poignant memorial to the victims and survivors of the Victorian bushfires.

Artisans from Australia and around the world are being called upon to forge gum leaves to add to a steel gumtree, which will be erected in one of the townships devastated by the February 7 fires.

The idea has been embraced by the people who were on the frontline of the battle against the firestorm.

"I am a CFA volunteer from Diamond Creek," says Cliff Overton, who produced the leaf pictured.

"I was at the Whittlesea Operations Point during the fire on the 7th and then was one of the first fire crews in Arthur's Creek, Strathewen and Kinglake the day after the fire - and it was the worst two days of my life.

"Blacksmithing was probably the biggest step I have made in my own recovery.

"I used fire to create something that will contribute to a memorial to those who perished. This was a very rewarding experience and one I would encourage others to consider; it helps."

Paul Mills from the Australian Blacksmiths Association Victoria is managing the project, and he says one of his colleagues had the idea in the week following the bushfires.

"It basically started when one of the blacksmiths in our association put up a post on an online forum saying 'let's open up to the international community to build a tree from our fires and forge a leaf'," he said.

"I thought it was a fantastic idea."

'Overwhelming response'

The plan is for Australian blacksmiths to forge the trunk and branches of the tree from stainless steel. The leaves, made by blacksmiths around the world, will be made of stainless steel or copper.

The Association is hoping for between 1,500 and 2,000 leaves to be collected by 30 June 2009 and they aim to assemble the tree in time for an unveiling on September 19.

Mr Mills says the response to the project has been overwhelming.

"Within hours, blacksmiths in Australia, the USA and Canada pledged to make leaves for the memorial tree," he said.

"Since those first days, blacksmiths from the UK, Germany, Finland, the Ukraine, New Zealand and Sweden have joined the project. Californian blacksmiths are aiming to send 300 leaves to Australia over the next two months.

"One of those leaves is made by Nathan, a nine-year-old third grader who loves blacksmithing so much he has been known to sleep clutching his hammer."

The response from the community has been one of the positives to come out of the disaster; at the time of writing the Bushfire Appeal had collected well over $200 million.

Mr Mills says financial assistance is not the only thing that can help people and communities focus on the next stage of their lives.

"Art should play a really big part of the recovery process. It's usually something that's overlooked but it's a really good outlet for people to be able to put back into the community," he said.

"We wanted to be able to give something back from what we do as blacksmiths. Having a standing memorial is something we can do."

This is no self-indulgent project by the blacksmiths. There seems no doubt survivors of the firestorm see this as an enormously therapeutic thing to do.

A post on an online blacksmithing forum from 'Salty' - the blacksmith who came up with the idea - provides compelling evidence of this.

"I was making some leaves at the Berwick show over the weekend and telling some blokes in the CFA about the Tree Project," he said.

"When I looked up they all had tears in their eyes. They couldn't believe what the blacksmithing community from all over the world were doing.

"They all said thanks."

The Association is currently looking for sponsors to provide them with stainless steel for the branches and trunk of the tree.